The Laundromat stars Meryl Streep, Antonio Banderas open up on Netflix's reach, and the 'need to adapt'

Meryl Streep says the reach of Netflix will ensure that The Laundromat reaches corners of the world where people aren’t much aware of the subject of the film. Steven Soderbergh’s drama is inspired by the Panama Papers, was initially supposed to be released theatrically. However, Netflix acquired the film in 2018 summer, according to Variety. Meryl, Antonio Banderas and Gary Oldman at Toronto International Film Festival

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Meryl Streep, Antonio Banderas and Gary Oldman, here for #TheLaundromat #TIFF19 #GaryOldman #MerylStreep #StevenSoderbergh @TIFF_NET pic.twitter.com/2rwoV75jYZ

— Antonio Banderas (@antoniobanderas) September 9, 2019

Meryl, who is making her Netflix debut with The Laundromat, told Variety, “If it (The Laundromat) were released in theaters, I don’t know, several thousand people in Manhattan, Boston and Los Angeles, who gravitate toward the material, would see it. Netflix is in 133 million households globally. It will reach places where it would not have normally been found. And that’s great, because it really is for the audience who doesn’t know about it already.” ( Read — The Laundromat early reactions: Meryl Streep-Gary Oldman comedy's 'slapdash narrative doesn't always click' ) After The Laundromat, Meryl will also be seen in  Ryan Murphy’s _The Prom_  for the streaming giant. The project has names of Nicole Kidman, James Corden, Ariana Grande, Awkwafina, Keegan-Michael Key and Andrew Rannells attached to it. Antonio Banderas, who shares the screen with Meryl on The Laundromat, said that Netflix has created many new job opportunities. He said that while people still hold “certain romanticism” about watching films on the silver screen, there is a “need to adapt.” In the past one year, Netflix has acquired many big projects helmed by A-list directors — from Alfonso Cuaron’s _Roma_ , Noah Baumbach’s _Marriage Story_ to and Dee Rees’ _Mudbound_ . The Laundromat, which had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival on 1 September, will open in limited theatres on 27 September, after which it will start streaming on Netflix from 18 October. Based on Jake Bernstein’s book Secrecy World: Inside the Panama Papers Investigation of Illicit Money Networks and the Global Elite, the film also stars Gary Oldman in the lead role.